Molly Carlson: young girls "deserve to grow up seeing female athletes celebrated" for capability
Canadian high diver
“This one hits close to home... because I didn’t think I looked like the athlete I was ‘supposed’ to be. Young girls deserve to grow up seeing female athletes celebrated for their strength, courage, talent and what their bodies are capable of.”
Open source (opens in a new tab)Sydney Sweeney’s ‘sexualized’ sports betting ad slammed by Canadian athletes
Source and context
Reporting
Sydney Sweeney’s ‘sexualized’ sports betting ad slammed by Canadian athletes (opens in a new tab)
About this source
CBC News report quoting Cassidy Gray’s TikTok video and Molly Carlson’s Instagram post, plus Jacob Fortinsky’s launch-day quote.
Before the quotation
Posted to Instagram on or around September 14, 2026.
After the quotation
Quoted and described directly by CBC News.
How this statement is classified
Condemned
Case context: Sydney Sweeney’s Novig "Just Sports" ad draws backlash over sexualizing women’s sport
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
Carlson frames the ad against her own history of body-image struggles in sport and argues athletes should be celebrated for capability rather than appearance, a clear denunciation of the ad’s approach.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Novig, Sydney Sweeney
Sydney Sweeney’s Novig "Just Sports" ad draws backlash over sexualizing women’s sport
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full case“Come on. With respect, I just don’t think it’s a kick in the face for any of those things... I can’t help feeling it would have been cooler for women’s sport to simply not even mention the naked gambling ad at all.”Read statement
“We never intended to portray female sports. Sydney’s an actress, the biggest movie star in the world. We’re a prediction market that is focused on sports, and that is the story that she was communicating... It really was Sydney who was driving the visuals and the messaging.”Read statement
“There’s a big difference between looking ‘sexy’ because you do sport compared to use sex to sell ‘sport’. There is nothing wrong with looking good and doing sport and there’s nothing wrong with embracing your femininity while also being a badass athlete.”Read statement